Laugh Maker
by GaaLee-girl-13
Summary: "'Laugh Maker', this isn't a joke!" Can Laugh Maker bring a smile to the face of the one person who wants him to disappear? America/Japan.


Japan kept his back to the door, tears flowing from his eyes. His hands clenched at his sides, gripping his yakama tightly. His head jerked up as a knock sounded on the door behind him. He couldn't meet anyone now, not with his face the way it was. Dark lines under his eyes stood out against his paled, slightly blotched skin. Tears left wet trails down his face and some on his neck. Japan turned to face the door.

"Who is it? What do you want?" He called out between choked sobs.

"It's not that great of a name…" The voice called. Japan took a slight step back, his eyes widening faintly. "But someone has called me 'Laugh Maker'!" The voice shouted exuberantly. "I've brought you a smile! Now let me in! It's cold out here!"

Japan clenched his teeth, taking a defensive stance out of fear. The door knob clicked, his guest trying to open the door. Japan grabbed the door knob and held it tightly. "'Laugh Maker'? This isn't a joke!" Japan shouted. "I don't remember calling someone like you!" He held the knob tighter as a foot was placed on the other side of the door, trying to jerk it open. "Just leave me alone and disappear!" The tears threatened to spill over again. "If you're here, I can't cry!" Japan slammed his fist against the door.

Silence greeted him from outside, shock seeming to set in. Japan turned his back to the door again, leaning against it, holding his face in his hands. Tears spilled from the cracks in his fingers as he slid down the door to sit in front of it, trembling with the sobs. His silence wasn't long lasted. Another knock flew through the air, shattering the lonely noise of his sadness. "That guy is still here…?" Japan muttered angrily. He stood and faced the door, fury bubbling up under the surface. "Didn't I tell you to disappear?"

"You're the first person to tell me that in my life…" His guest said just loud enough to be heard. "I'm… I'm really sad now…" His words began to shake, the tiny tremors of tears rattling them as they escaped his lips. "What should I do…? I think… I'm going to cry…" The sound of tears began to seep through the door.

"'Laugh Maker'? This is no joke!" Japan yelled, tears rolling down his cheeks as he did. "It can't be helped if you cry!" The sobbing from outside grew louder. "I'm… I'm the one who wants to cry…!" Japan tried to yell, but the tears choked him. His words fading to a near whisper as the affects of his sadness grasped him like tiny claws. "I don't remember calling someone like you…!" The two stood facing each other, separated only by the door, their tears mingling into one loud echo of sadness and fear. They both slumped, backs to the door, sobs and hiccups mixing into the weight that pressed them down. Japan hugged his knees tightly to his chest.

"Do you still intend to make me laugh… 'Laugh Maker'?" Japan asked quietly, almost in defeat.

"It's what I live for…" He replied between sobs. "If I can't make you laugh… I can't go home…" The crying worsened.

Japan stood, facing the door and setting in his mind to let him in. He reached for the knob, but a cruel joke from life was played, the cards laid out for the perfect storm. The door knob fell off in his hand, the weight in his palm carrying the wave of shock that came with it. Japan knocked on the door.

"It won't open from in here. Push the door from your side. It's already unlocked." Silence greeted his words. Japan waited longer. The pressure of the tears grew, causing them to spill out onto his still wet cheeks. "Say un or sun or something like that!" He shouted in fear. "What's wrong? It can't be…" Reality set in. The space on the other side of the door was empty. "'Laugh Maker'! This isn't funny! Now you leave me behind by myself!" Japan held his face in his hands, falling to his knees. Tears ran like the Ishikari down his palms and dripped to the floor. "You disappeared without minding me…!" The pain set in like an old wound reopened. "You betrayed me the instant I believed in you!" The knife in his heart was twisted and wrenched by fates cruel hand. "'Laugh Maker', this isn't a joke!" He cried out, tears pooling at his knees.

The sound of shattering glass jerked Japan back to the present. His window was broken, his guest standing in it, an iron pipe held in his hand. "America…" Japan whispered between sobs. America's face was pale and blotched, tears still seeping from the corners of his eyes as he wiped his crying face.

"I brought you a smile…" He said wearily, holding out his other hand to give Japan his half of the door knob. Japan ignored it, rushing forward to hug America tightly. He clung to the young nation's shoulders, tears streaming down his face with a renewed vigor. America wrapped his arms around Japan's waist, holding the small island close as he buried his face in the shoulder of his yakama. Tears soaked the delicate fabric as the two cried in each other's arms for what seemed like forever.

America finally stepped back, reaching into his pocket to pull out a small hand mirror. He faced it to Japan and said softly, "Your crying face can smile." He himself let a faint twitch catch his lips, tweaking the corners up slightly in a shy manner. Japan looked at the mirror, the deep lines beneath his eyes, the tracks of the tears, the red that rose to his cheeks…

And smiled.


End file.
